One wicked S197 that’s built for the standing mile and dragstrip

Eddie Maloney

November 25, 2016

From drag racing to road racing, Doug Paddock has dabbled in just about everything there is to race. Doug currently resides just outside of the Denver, Colorado area and is the proud owner of Paddock Imports. Out back, is also Overkill Race Cars. In 2014, Doug purchased “El Jefe” or “Jef” from good friend and customer Ryan Rego. What initially started out as just a hot rod to cruise around town with, turned into one of the most unique Mustangs in the country. Doug told us, “We just kind of got carried away with it.”

Jef, is a multi purpose built car that has seen time at both the dragstrip and at the Colorado and Texas standing mile events. Currently, it’s the fastest Colorado and Texas standing mile Coyote powered car running over 215 mph. Doug plans to run the next Texas mile event and is expecting to break that record by running over 250 mph. His best time down the quarter-mile so far has been a 9.03 at 159.7 mph with an easy1.42 sixty-foot time. Although it had more in it Doug said, it was good enough to win Street Car Takeover in Denver 2015.

The muscle under the hood was designed and built by Jeremiah Hussey, owner of Modular Performance Solutions based in Robbins, North Carolina. The Coyote was beefed up to a 316ci twin-turbo monster, pushing over 1,700 street legal horsepower. To handle the boost, Manley pistons were added along with a Boss crankshaft with custom grind camshafts. Boss ported and polished heads were installed along with a Boss intake (a custom sheet metal intake will be installed later this year). The fuel/air technology behind the power plant consists of an Accufab throttle-body, ID 2000 injectors, and an Aeromotive pump and regulator system. The icing on the cake is the twin Precision Turbo 6466 ball-bearing turbochargers that are pushing 30 pounds of boost. Fuel of choice is M1methanol, while a stand alone AEM Infinity 8 was chosen for fuel system management. The mastermind behind the tuning of all this is Joe Oplawski from Hyperaktive Performance Solutions.

After going through several 6R80s, an ACE Racing Transmission’s all billet 4L80E normally found in such cars as Bentleys and Jaguars was installed, along with a Circle D 3,800-stall speed converter. The suspension needed to be designed for the cars dual purpose and many of the parts were designed in house at Overkill Race Cars; the K-member, upper/lower control arms, and the subframe were all fabricated in house. Menscer Motorsports shocks were installed on all four corners along a with a manual steering box conversion kit. A BMR sway bar and Afco springs were also added to complete the suspension. The factory rearend was replaced with a 9-inch, featuring 3.25:1 gears and a Mark Williams spool with 35-spline axles.
There is nothing more important to Doug Paddock then safety in his race cars. Doug installed the largest wildwood brakes he could fit behind both sets Weld V series and True Forged Wheels. Along with the large brake system, a single parachute was also installed.

Inside the Mustang you will a highly modified Overkill/ Wolfe race craft roll cage and fire system. The moly cage design resembles what one would see in both a road race and a drag car. The fire systems rivals the same system design used in Nitro Funny Cars. It utilizes nozzles that point into the driver’s compartment and engine bay. In thirty years of racing, Doug has been upside down and on a fire a few times - as a husband and a father, he is not taking any chances.

Custom in house fabricated and removable body panels were designed to maximize the aerodynamics for the standing mile events. Doug claims the ground effects underneath the car are the critical components when it comes to downforce at upper speeds. However, when Doug is driving around town, the panels are easily removable within minutes.

Doug’s ride has come a long way from its original roots and Doug has many people to thank for that, including his crew at Overkill Race Cars, Paddock Imports, Precision Turbo, Joe Oplawski, Jeremiah Hussey, and more importantly, his entire family.